


The Friend In Me, Is The Enemy In You

by InfluentialDebauchery



Category: Gotham (TV)
Genre: Bromance, Death, Drabble, Frenemies, M/M, Murder, Plot Twists, Revenge, Short One Shot, Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-06
Updated: 2017-06-06
Packaged: 2018-11-09 23:59:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,263
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11115624
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InfluentialDebauchery/pseuds/InfluentialDebauchery
Summary: *SLIGHT SPOILER WARNING FOR THE SHOW REGARDING CHARACTER/PLOT ELEMENT*....Edward is being plagued by hallucinations of Oswald. In order to get some relative peace, he turns to something drastic.





	The Friend In Me, Is The Enemy In You

"Let me sleep! I just want to sleep!" Ed yelled at the apparition of Oswald lying next to him. The genius hadn't adequately rested in four days and it was starting to show. "You can bother me later."

"Later." Oswald gave a reminiscent sigh, "Must be nice to have that kind of time, you know, living and all. I guess I have an eternity, being dead. Should I thank you for that?"

There was no reply from Ed. He had heard all the commentary Oswald offered, in various forms, and at great length. Instead he focused on closing his eyes and hoped the three sleeping pills working their way in his system helped.

Oswald nudged Ed with an elbow, "Its rude to fall asleep during a conversation."

"How is it rude, when you're not even real?!" Ed growled through clenched teeth, his entire body becoming taught with anger.

"This is coming from the guy talking to an imaginary man. Or in your case, talking to a direct correlation of guilt, am I right?" The former mayor sneered along with his assessment.

"Oswald, SHUT. UP."

"Or what? You will shoot me again?"

Ed finally had enough and sat up in bed; eyes red and stinging; his mind devolving into incoherent thoughts. 

In his night stand he kept a syringe, if Ed should ever need it - a sedative strong enough to induce a light coma. Which was a solution he desperately welcomed and hoped would temporarily rid him of Oswald.

"What is that?" Oswald asked curiously, watching Ed press the needle to his inner elbow, and the clear liquid disappear into Ed's arm. "Finally come to join me?"

A wave of calm washed over Ed as he leaned back in bed and Oswald's face blurred out of sight. He was barely able to mumble, "The hell away from you...."

\------------------

"Wake up." A hand was on Ed's chest shaking him, "I said, wake up."

The Madman's eyes opened for a brief moment, he saw a familiar silhouette, but his brain was still foggy from the sedative. After opening them a second time, he rolled away cursing, "How are you still here?!"

"I love you too Ed." Oswald handed him his glasses and gave him a cheerful grin, "You know I live here, it's my house."

It took Ed a moment of looking at the room, he was at Oswald's manor house and seated on one of the guest beds.

When he had fallen asleep, Ed was at his loft apartment being tormented by Oswald's remnant. How he had awakened here was anybody's guess or he could still very well be comatose.

"What do you want?" Ed wearily asked as he put on his spectacles and stepped out of the bed. 

"It's late afternoon and we have business to get done." 

"What sort of business?"

Oswald shuffled to the bedroom door and held the doorknob, "Gordon's not going to kill himself. Now get dressed and meet me at the car."

\-----------------

The two drove to a rarely used subway station and sat on the descending stone steps. Apparently, Gordon had crossed Oswald for the last time; the detective now due to meet his end.

All of this odd for Ed. How could a figmented Oswald kill a corporeal person? This had to be a dream or Ed was seriously ill, believing Oswald to be imaginary when he wasn't.

They had a bit of time to kill during their wait and Ed stared at this version of Oswald. There wasn't a shadow of hate in his eyes towards Ed, he seemed like his old self - genuinely happy and charismatic.

Ed felt a sharp pang in his chest as well as his gut - he missed this, terribly. He missed the Oswald before everything had gone wrong or had it? This was frustrating.

"Oswald?"

"Hm?"

"Are we friends?" Ed ventured to ask his counterpart, unsure of the answer, "Or are we merely surviving?"

A hearty chuckle broke the silence and echoed off the cavernous subway walls. Oswald finding the question amusing somehow, "After all that we have been through. I would like to believe we are friends and have made it past a relationship of, the end justifies the means. Don't you?"

"I do. But it's nice to have reassurance." Ed offered as a meager reply.

Before they could talk further the sound of foot steps came to greet them and Jim Gordon appeared in their wake.

"You needed to see me?" Gordon asked cautiously in his usual way, "What's so important?"

"Where's Bullock?" Oswald asked replacing Gordon's questions with his own. "He's usually following you like an anxious puppy."

"He had business at the GCPD." The detective looked between Ed and Oswald. It was becoming more obvious what this was about. "Tell me what ridiculous thing you need, so I can be on my way."

Ed stepped forward, "It's pretty simple Jim, we need you to leave town, preferably in a body bag."

How great it felt to be a part of the 'good old days'.

Each man whipping a gun out at the same time, but Gordon firing first between them. Then proceeded to run trying to lure them into his own trap.

Ed tailed him at full speed, managing to catch up, and knocked him to the ground, guns clattering along with them.

Gordon had to die. This was the ultimate apology Ed could offer Oswald. Even if this Oswald wasn't his own Oswald, he was a great reprieve from the hellish reminder he had escaped.

The two men wrestled on the ground, trading blows, and switching the upper hand. Until Gordon managed to remain on top - hands on Ed's throat and they roughly choked the breath from him.

Oswald nowhere around to help him. Perhaps this was the real plan all along. Maybe Jim and Oswald had planned to kill Ed the entire time.

As Ed faded from consciousness yet again; the eerie laugh of Oswald Cobblepot rang out in the subway tunnels.

\---------------

"You sorry bastard!" Oswald exclaimed over Ed's pitiful attempts to breathe. "This was too easy!"

Already Ed's eyes were bulging, veins ruptured and bleeding; face a growing purple hue. In the background his door was kicked in and the weight of Oswald sitting atop him, too real.

"I saw you sleeping so peacefully and it disgusted me Ed. So much so that I had to have the satisfaction of wringing your neck!" 

A brief moment of confusion clouded Ed's cherry colored eyes and twisted at his gaping mouth.

"Still thought I was dead?" Oswald sneered evilly before it dropped back into a black expression, "In the next life, make sure the water is warm, so the person actually bleeds out!"

A final compressive grip on Ed's throat resulted in a resounding snap. The Riddler's reign coming to an abrupt stop as his body went limp.

Oswald stared down at his deceased friend and let out a shuddering sigh he had held in, "If you only could have loved me back Ed. It wouldn't have come to this."

\--------------

Oswald was putting the last touches on his glorious sandwich. He placed the other slice of bread in position and picked up the knife he was going to use to cut it in half.

"Do you remember when you broke into my apartment and helped yourself to my food?"

The mobster jumped from being startled and turned to see a ghastly sight, heart hammering in his chest.

Ed leaned against Oswald's fridge, "Miss me? I missed you, death is a lonely place." He grinned as Oswald fainted.


End file.
